Activity 3-U2.0: Learning About Rainbows
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will understand how rainbows form when the light reflected off
of raindrops is bent to reveal its component colors.
• Thematic: Energy, Patterns of Change, Systems and Interactions.
• Content: How do we use light?
• Process: Observing, Relating.
Description of Activity: Students will read an explanation of how rainbows form.
Students are encouraged to do an outdoor activity where they can make their own rainbows
using a spray bottle or hose.
Notes: The outdoor activity can be done as a homework assignment or a class project.
If there is not enough time for this activity a graphic of a child making a rainbow
is provided in the web page for this activity.
Activity 4-U2.1: Learning About Prisms
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will comprehend that prisms can make a rainbow of a light source's
component colors through the bending of light.
• Thematic: Energy, Patterns of Change, Systems and Interactions.
• Content: What are the properties of light?
• Process: Observing, Relating.
Description of Activity: Students will read a brief explanation of prisms and how
they bend light to make a rainbow.
Notes: This page can be followed up with an in-class demonstration of light passing
through a prism if you have a prism to work with. A light bulb or sunlight can be
used with a prism to create a rainbow.
Activity 5-U2.2: Adjusting the Intensity, or Energy, of Light
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will explore how light can differ in intensity.
• Thematic: Energy, Patterns of change, Scale and Structure, Systems and Interactions.
• Content: What are the sources of light?
• Process: Observing, Communicating, Relating.
Description of Activity: Students will read an explanation of different sources of
light along with how the intensity, or energy, of light can change depending upon
its source. Afterwards students will manipulate a color card that simulates various
intensities of light. These color cards simulate bins in telescopes that capture
various wavelengths of light.
Notes: It may be helpful to have a discussion with your students as to which light
sources they are familiar with are dim and which are very bright.
Activity 6-U2.3: Indicating the Intensity of a Light Source's Component Colors with Numbers
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will compare and contrast the component colors of different sources
of light using "color cards" that indicate the component colors of a light
source and that color's intensity.
• Thematic: Energy, Patterns of Change, Scale and Structure, Systems and Interactions
• Content: What are the sources of light?
• Process: Observing, Communicating, Comparing, Ordering, Categorizing, Relating.
Description of Activity: Students will further explore how light sources differ from
each other by viewing graphics of light from different sources passing through a
prism. Color cards will be used to indicate the intensity of the light source's component
colors with a number from 0-10.
Notes: It is important to discuss the student's observations as to how the sources
of light differ in regards to the color cards. Writing down these observations would
be a good way to include language arts within this activity.
Activity 7-U3.1: Making a Histogram of a Light Source
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will observe how histograms of a light source can be made by plotting
the intensity of that source's component colors on a bar graph. Students will also
compare and contrast the histograms of different light sources.
• Thematic: Energy, Patterns of Change, Scale and Structure, Systems and Interactions.
• Content: What are the sources of light? How do we use light?
• Process: Observing, Communicating, Comparing, Ordering, Categorizing, Relating.
Description of activity: Students will view a histogram of sunlight along with its
color cards indicating component color intensity. The computer converts the color
cards into a bar on the graph thereby creating a histogram. Afterwards the students
will compare the histograms of different light sources with the histogram of sunlight.
Notes: This activity requires an understanding of bar graphs. Make sure that your
students are able to read and interpret bar graphs before attempting this activity.
Activity 8-U3.2: Comparing and Matching Histograms of Sources of Light
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will identify a histogram's light source by comparing that histogram
with the histogram of known light sources.
• Thematic: Energy, Scale and Structure, Systems and Interactions.
• Content: What are the sources of light? What is light?
• Process: Observing, Communicating, Comparing, Ordering, Categorizing, Relating,
Inferring.
Description of Activity: Students will be given a number of color cards representing
a light sources component colors in the visible part of the light spectrum and a
histogram of this light source. They must then compare this histogram with the histograms
of various sources in order to identify the light source.
Notes: Making a report of this activity is a good way to bring language arts into
this activity.
Activity 9-U3.3: Designing Light Sources
Suggested Grade Level: 3-6
Objectives:
• Lesson: Students will make their own histogram of a light source.
• Thematic: Energy, Patterns of Change, Scale and Structure, Systems and Interactions.
• Content: What are the sources of light? What is light?
• Process: Observing, Communicating, Comparing, Ordering, Categorizing, Relating,
Inferring, Applying.
Description of Activity: Students create their own sources of light by creating their
own histogram of a light source.
Notes: Have your students use their imaginations to describe the light histogram
that they made. They can write about their light source using the terms "component
colors" and "light intensity" as a way of assessing their understanding
of light histograms.